‘Little birdies’ tell Simmons Durant to Warriors still in play originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Could Kevin Durant to the Warriors still be alive?
Bill Simmons thinks — and has heard — a trade between Golden State and the Brooklyn Nets for the two-time NBA champion isn’t an impossibility.
“I think the team’s the Warriors,” Simmons said on Sunday’s episode of “The Bill Simmons Podcast” regarding who could land Durant. “I can’t believe I’m saying that, but from the little birdies that I’ve heard — ‘cause you know I have little birdies, my information is usually correct — guy by the name of [Warriors owner] Joe Lacob, might’ve heard of him … Joe, pretty enchanted by the dynasty possibilities right now.
“… You bring Durant back, and now it’s like, ‘We could win the next three titles in a row?’ ”
The Warriors have been linked to Durant ever since the 33-year-old requested a trade out of Brooklyn. Those whispers of a reunion between Golden State and their former star seemed to have died down in recent weeks, though Lacob didn’t shut them down outright when he had the opportunity to on “The TK Show” in early July.
Durant’s name wasn’t mentioned specifically in Lacob’s interview with The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami, but Lacob said the Warriors will “always look at any opportunities” to make the team better.
“The question you have to ask is: better near term, better intermediate-term, or better long term?” Lacob said on “The TK Show.” “Some options to building the team, if we were to pivot in some way, some partial way, might give us an even higher upside near term, but might decrease the long term.
“So these are the things that [general manager] Bob [Myers] and the group all have to look at and determine what’s the right path.”
It is worth noting that Myers implied Golden State likes its roster the way it is shortly after Lacob’s interview with Kawakami.
Trading for Durant certainly would interrupt any long-term plans the Warriors have for young players like Moses Moody, Jonathan Kuminga, James Wiseman, and Jordan Poole. But Simmons believes this, along with draft picks, is the exact reason why Golden State makes the most sense as Durant’s eventual landing spot.
And if it’s a sustained dynasty Lacob is looking for, Durant would be a safe bet at achieving it.
“The thing is, they have the best assets for trade,” Simmons said. “They have the most that Brooklyn would be like, ‘All right, that makes sense.’ And then from a Golden State standpoint, you could actually say they would improve.”
RELATED: Why Andre firmly believes Durant should remain with Nets
Simmons suggested the Warriors include Draymond Green in the deal, avoiding the upcoming questions surrounding his contract and likely eliminating the need to include a player like Andrew Wiggins or one of their young stars in the deal.
Given Durant’s complicated history with the Warriors and what the team would have to give up for him, Simmons isn’t sure if a trade ultimately would play out.
But if Simmons’ “little birdies” are correct and the Warriors in fact are interested in trading for Durant, the team reportedly has its fair share of competition in their newest-rival Memphis Grizzlies.
While rumors continue to swirl as they have for weeks now, it doesn’t look like this saga is ending any time soon.
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